I’m perched in the swing this morning enjoying the glorious day the Lord has given me, drinking coffee from my favorite bird mug. I’m grateful for my health and thankful for the happiness I find in my song birds, my little garden, and my pots of flowers. Been watering my vegetables and flowers this morning and giving all the pot flowers a good soaking of water. They really suffered in the heat when I was sick. I didn’t even think about them…but I’ve babied them the last two days, apologized profusely, and brought them back to life.

God has such a wondrous colorful palette he uses to paint the flowers. As I walked around with my watering jugs I noticed how beautiful the colors are on the blooms in my yard. The foxgloves blooms by the mailbox are a beautiful purplish mauve. The little foxglove blooms are always full of bees. Every where I look I see God and Mother Nature’s handiwork. The bright yellow sunflowers the birds planted from raking seeds out of the feeders are so pretty even in their disfigurement. Some of the blooms have just a few petals, some are just a tiny bloom on a short stem but they are rays of sunshine because I know Chief and my bird friends planted them.

Follow the Son of God as the young sunflower follows the sunshine. Following his light and example will bring us joy, happiness, and peace. — Guertin L. Cook

The sunflowers I planted in my flower garden are about 12 inches tall and growing quickly. I look forward to all 15 different varieties blooming. My first zinnia bud opened today and soon all the butterflies will be visiting the rows of zinnias. Zinnias are my favorite flower with sunflowers a close second.

I’m eating my first vegetable supper from my garden tonight! I know it will be delicious. Can’t wait till my tomatoes grow large enough to pick. Found three cucumbers in my shorts’ pocket last night. I had put them in there when I was checking for zucchini. I found a large one, about a size 14 in a man’s basketball shoe. Those things grow like kudzu!

I never throw away the big squash. Cut a large zucchini in half, scoop the meat out and sauté with garlic, onions, and tomatoes. When the mixture is cooked well spoon it back in the squash boats, top with cheese and croutons or bread crumbs. Cook at 350 degrees for an hour. Sometimes I put hamburger meat in them, too. Delicious! If the seeds are too big just stuff them with onions and tomatoes, or hamburger meat or yellow squash or roast them or make French fries from them or zucchini bread…millions of ways to eat the big squash. I love zucchini!

Our Christian faith grows like a garden, too. Our faith in God is nourished through prayer and Bible study. We have to be rooted in God and watered with his grace to grow strong and bloom in our religious beliefs. God gives us the power to grow spiritually as we prayerfully worship and study his teachings. Just as the garden shares its harvest with the stewards of the land we share our garden of faith with others.

Jesus said, “A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how.” — Mark 4:26-27

We sow the seeds of our faith and share our harvest of God’s love through acts of kindness. Our faith can wilt when we neglect it or question God’s plans for us. If we sow our seeds of faith deep and nurture them through prayer we will be rewarded with a harvest of happiness, joy, and peace.

 “To nurture a garden is to feed not just the body, but the soul.” — Rudyard Kipling